Emotionally weary or hardened. A combination of heartache and shopworn. Conceived in 1978 for the film Heartworn Highways by Phillip Schopper, editor. The film was originally titled "New Country" and was selected and appeared in LA's Filmex under that title. The title was changed for general release.
"We were searching for a title that was more on target and descriptive of the effect of the film and 'heartworn' came to me. Nearly all these songs spoke of heartaches that had been well traveled and I pictured them as worn, like tires and old boots -- well used and been there before." --phillip schopper